Joe B. Miller Wins Micros in the 25th Knepper Memorial

Joe B. Miller – Connor Hamilton photo

Belleville, IL – Taking to the high-banked Belle-Clair Speedway for the 25th Annual Knepper Memorial, Joe B. Miller took the checkers over a relentless Slater Helt for his 25th career POWRi Speedway Motors 600cc Outlaw Micro Series main event, placing him at a tie with Dereck King on the all-time win list.

Starting on the pole, this would be no easy feat for Miller as Slater Helt pressured from the drop of the green flag, closely followed by Weldon, Illinois’s Garrett Duff. A mix of action and racing lines, Miller worked both the top and the bottom sides of the high-banked Belle-Clair Speedway, while Helt relentlessly railed the top side. Duff on the other hand, worked the bottom side, trading positions with Helt around the halfway point. As the laps wound down, Miller would cross the finish line first, Helt in second, and Garrett Duff took third. Nathan Benson finished fourth, while Andy Bishop rounded out the top five.

“We’ve been rolling really good with the micro here the last month or so,” said Joe B. Miller. “This car’s just been on a rail. We got going there the last few laps and started hustling back around the top.”

“Got to be one better,” Slater Helt said. “Joe B. has us tonight. He was quick. I’ve got to thank my dad for one. He worked his butt off all week.”
“The car was strong at the beginning of the race and it kind of went away,” explained Garrett Duff. “I was adjusting on the shocks under the caution and I think I put myself backwards, but we’ll take a third here. We don’t get to run here that much, but we sure like racing here.”